Monday, February 15, 2010

National Disability News: Washington Post Article-By Timothy Shriver

Professor and author Christopher M. Fairman ["The case against banning the word 'retard,' " Outlook, Feb. 14] made good arguments about the limits of language to effect change in behavior and attitude, as well as about the nuanced ways in which words such as "retard," "queer" and "gay" can carry multiple meanings, some of which intend no insult or humiliation.

But I believe he missed the point of the campaign by people who have intellectual disabilities, their friends, advocates and tens of thousands of individuals and dozens of organizations: We are fighting a word because it represents one of the most stubborn and persistent stigmas in history. Millions of people have a prejudice they often are not even aware of. It is much bigger than a word, but words matter. And the word "retard," whatever its history, reflects a massive problem.

Mental Disability Rights International has found evidence around the world of horrific conditions -- starvation, abuse, isolation -- in institutions serving people with intellectual disabilities. It happens in this country. In Texas, caregivers were recently found to be forcing residents of an institution to awake in the middle of the night and fight one another while staffers cheered and taunted. Here in Washington, repeated investigations have revealed people with intellectual disabilities as the victims of abuse, indifference and negligent death.

Facebook Badge

Power of the Disability Vote!

The Arc of North Carolina 2011 Legislative Agenda.

The Arc of North Carolina advocates for and with families and people with cognitive and developmental disabilities. We believe that the following legislative agenda promotes our goals of advocacy, inclusion, and access to the communities we live in.

The Arc of North Carolina Proposed Policy Agenda 2011

Budget:

The Arc of North Carolina understands the current budget constraints that the state of North Carolina finds itself in due to the economic recession. During this critical time it is more important than ever to protect needed services for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities.We encourage the members of the General Assembly to do the following things to protect the integrity of community-based services for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities in our state.

No additional cuts to state-funded services for people with developmental disabilities.

Apply for 1915 (i) State Plan services for adults with developmental disabilities targeting supports that currently utilize state general fund appropriations and utilizing those funds a Medicaid match.

Add an additional CAP-DD Waiver for people with developmental disabilities who have significant behavioral and or medical needs.

Raise the Supports Waiver limit to 25 thousand dollars.

Utilize the Supports Intensity Scale as an initial eligibility tool for entrance into the CAP waivers with a reconsideration process utilizing other information.

Manage all of developmental disability services from a state system utilizing existing local structures where appropriate.

Housing:Fair Housing Act Amendment.

This legislation prohibits discrimination on the basis or receipt of housing assistance. Many people with disabilities receive housing assistance. This legislation if passed would assist in opening more housing opportunities to the disability community.

Education:Study ways to allow students with developmental disabilities to access current courses in our community college system. Included in this study we must look at ways to offer real job skill training to students with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

The Arc of North Carolina

Welcome to The Arc of North Carolina's official policy blog. The Arc has been serving people with disabilities for more than 50 years. In an effort to reach out to our statewide community about issues that effect us we have established this blog.

Become A Member of The Arc of North Carolina:We encourage you to become a member of The Arc of North Carolina. You can find out more about becoming a member by visiting http://www.arcnc.org/.

Visit Our Facebook Page

Join the debate. Have something to say and want quick feedback? Want to join the social networking craze? We invite you to visit and become a fan of our Facebook Page.

Contact Your North Carolina State Legislators!

Contact Congress!

About Me

Content Disclaimer

Opinions expressed on this blog are not necessarily the opinion of the The Arc of North Carolina or The Arc of the United States.The Arc of North Carolina is a non-profit and non-partisan organization. It does not endorse candidates or political parties.